Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease that is described by swelling of the joints or synovium or lining. Rheumatoid arthritis may result in long-lasting joint damage, causing chronic pain, disability and loss of function. Autoimmune diseases are those diseases that arise when the body’s immune system attacks its own tissues mistakenly. Rheumatoid arthritis can also affect other organs in our body.
Rheumatoid arthritis stages
Rheumatoid arthritis advances in 3 stages. The three stages are as follows.
The 1st stage involves the inflammation of the synovial lining, leading to pain, stiffness, warmth, swelling and redness about the joint.
In the 2nd stage there is rapid division is the rapid cell division and cell growth that causes the synovium to thicken.
The 3rd stage involves the release of enzymes by the inflamed cells. The enzymes can digest cartilage and bone and thus making the joint involved to lose its alignment and shape, causing pain and movement loss.
What does cause rheumatoid arthritis?
The exact cause of rheumatoid arthritis is not known. Infectious agents like bacteria, viruses and fungi have been suspected for long but there is no proof for them to cause rheumatoid arthritis. Researches are being undertaken worldwide in order to identify the causes of rheumatoid arthritis. Some researchers feel that the tendency of developing rheumatoid arthritis can be inherited genetically. It is alleged that some infections or environmental factors may cause the body’s immune system to attack its own tissues, leading to inflammation in different organs like that of the eyes or lungs.
Irrespective of what causes the trigger, the end result is that the immune system is activated to cause swelling in the joints and other tissues of your body. Immune cells otherwise known, as lymphocytes are triggered and chemical messengers are expressed in the areas of inflammation.
Environmental factors are also considered to play some part in bringing about rheumatoid arthritis. Researchers have recently found out that tobacco smoking rises the possibility of developing rheumatoid arthritis.
Who is at risk of getting rheumatoid arthritis?
In the USA around 1.3 million people possess rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatoid arthritis or RA can involve anyone, even children. However about seventy percent of those having rheumatoid arthritis are women. RA mostly occurs in persons in the age group of 30 to 50 years of age. Also people who possess the genetic marker HLA-DR4 seem to have more possibility of getting RA.
Women have 2 to 3 times more probability of getting rheumatoid arthritis than men. But when men are affected the severity of the disease seems to be more than in women.
Rheumatoid arthritis usually moves into remission in cases of pregnant women, however the symptoms seem to raise in intensity after the birth of the baby.